PNGBLOGS

By SUSAN MERRELL In the remote Central Province district of Goilala, all 15 of the government aid posts are closed.   For the villages of the district the nearest facilities are now in the township of Tapini.   Yet, in Port Moresby, the PNG government has, in its employ, 'managers' responsible for the running of the aid posts - they have nothing to do, but they still collect their pay cheques every fortnight.  This notwithstanding, there's no available government money to keep the aid posts operational.  This is sheer bastardry that carries unimagined consequences.  Nowadays, in Goilala, to access medical services, many villagers need to walk for many hours, some for days.  The district is as bereft of roads as it is aid posts.   Goilala has also been left particularly bereft of 'district funds' that are allocated by the government to the sitting Member of Parliament each year for distribution.  Health secretary of the Catholic diocese of Bereina, Leontine Javia, sa

By GABRIEL RAMOI The most revealing aspect of the  ADB study is not the information  put forward  by the writers  in support of  Privatisation but of the lack of critical  information  that the study should  have  generated  in assisting  policy debate in PNG  as to how  PNG can solve the lack of basic services to the bulk of its people in terms of the Provision  for  the Supply of Clean Treated Piped Water. The supply of Electricity to each house  and  the cost of  supplying  and providing  durable Housing  to the  7 million People of PNG .  The Debate on Privatisation in PNG ended  with the removal of Sir Mekere  as  Prime Minister  in 2002 following the loss of   life’s  and  national  indignation  directed at the World Bank Structural  adjustment Program  and on  Native  Land registration Agenda which is the other critical pillar of the Privatisation debate.  Privatisation has led Ireland and Greece to the brink of Bankruptcy and is a path that PNG has chosen not to follow. The  un

By GABRIEL RAMOI The most revealing aspect of the  ADB study is not the information  put forward  by the writers  in support of  Privatisation but of the lack of critical  information  that the study should  have  generated  in assisting  policy debate in PNG  as to how  PNG can solve the lack of basic services to the bulk of its people in terms of the Provision  for  the Supply of Clean Treated Piped Water. The supply of Electricity to each house  and  the cost of  supplying  and providing  durable Housing  to the  7 million People of PNG .  The Debate on Privatisation in PNG ended  with the removal of Sir Mekere  as  Prime Minister  in 2002 following the loss of   life’s  and  national  indignation  directed at the World Bank Structural  adjustment Program  and on  Native  Land registration Agenda which is the other critical pillar of the Privatisation debate.  Privatisation has led Ireland and Greece to the brink of Bankruptcy and is a path that PNG has chosen not to follow.

By DAVID MURI P hoto Cred it : Malum Nalu DO animals inhabit Port Moresby? Many visitors would think so. Because the city’s entire length and breadth is overshadowed by stink and filth. This supposedly modern metropolis – Papua New Guinea’s largest – replicates more or less a pigsty, where animals of the lowest echelon dwell and breed. I am forced into this filthy issue because I see that junks, which are hardly found in pavements of any other capital cities on earth, are hastily dumped here. Why? Should we say Papua New Guineans have animal brains and could not distinguish good from bad? Or are we still primitives and could not differentiate between right and wrong? I am briefly breathing fresh air here in North Lakes, a quiet Brisbane suburb of some thousand residents. I left on Independence Day to commemorate our big day with other patriotic PNG residents here. I know Port Moresby is home, but I want to be frank and make some sincere comparisons here. Port Moresby is our capital whi

By DAVID MURI P hoto Cred it : Malum Nalu DO animals inhabit Port Moresby? Many visitors would think so. Because the city’s entire length and breadth is overshadowed by stink and filth. This supposedly modern metropolis – Papua New Guinea’s largest – replicates more or less a pigsty, where animals of the lowest echelon dwell and breed. I am forced into this filthy issue because I see that junks, which are hardly found in pavements of any other capital cities on earth, are hastily dumped here. Why? Should we say Papua New Guineans have animal brains and could not distinguish good from bad? Or are we still primitives and could not differentiate between right and wrong? I am briefly breathing fresh air here in North Lakes, a quiet Brisbane suburb of some thousand residents. I left on Independence Day to commemorate our big day with other patriotic PNG residents here. I know Port Moresby is home, but I want to be frank and make some sincere comparisons here. Port Moresby is our capi

By CHRISTOPHER PAPIALI In the name of the political game in Papua New Guinea, what we see is the crucifixion of rival candidates, business opponents, and MPs on opposing sides. It has been a norm and it is becoming a norm despite major political transitions in the life of the national parliament and continuous constitutional amendments. So we ask: Would this form of payback system stop forever or continue? After 37 years of uninterrupted lowering of Australian flag, the country has changed a lot and one cannot disrepute this major observation because a lot of our people can affirm this major transition. What has not changed is the tendency of the payback culture within our political and bureaucratic system. This week the current government has nailed the former Gaming Board chief, Mr. Simon Sanagke, who was a major rival candidate to Hon. William Duma. The government has extended its muscle and tussled Former Speaker, Hon. Jeffrey Nape, who was a major rival to Hon. Kerenga Kua, whom t

By CHRISTOPHER PAPIALI In the name of the political game in Papua New Guinea, what we see is the crucifixion of rival candidates, business opponents, and MPs on opposing sides. It has been a norm and it is becoming a norm despite major political transitions in the life of the national parliament and continuous constitutional amendments. So we ask: Would this form of payback system stop forever or continue? After 37 years of uninterrupted lowering of Australian flag, the country has changed a lot and one cannot disrepute this major observation because a lot of our people can affirm this major transition. What has not changed is the tendency of the payback culture within our political and bureaucratic system. This week the current government has nailed the former Gaming Board chief, Mr. Simon Sanagke, who was a major rival candidate to Hon. William Duma. The government has extended its muscle and tussled Former Speaker, Hon. Jeffrey Nape, who was a major rival to Hon. Kerenga Kua, w

With an expected budget deficit of K500+ million for 2012 and the intent to borrow K6 billion from China, the O’Neil Government intends to STEAL MORE FROM FUTURE GENERATIONS from the anticipated LNG benefits. The national debt from foreign and domestic lenders accrued over the last few decades already tips the scales at K9 billion. The K6 billion from Exim Bank will close to double the national debt overnight to a whopping K15 billion. Sovereign investment funds generate economic security for future generations by converting “endowments” of natural resources into financial endowments. Some of them are so-called “permanent funds,” born of the philosophy that benefits from a country’s nonrenewable resources belong to all future generations, not just to the generation that discovered them. National laws should be made to ensure the current and future governments don’t use up the principle from the LNG cashflows but only live off the interest from these funds so the value of principle amou

With an expected budget deficit of K500+ million for 2012 and the intent to borrow K6 billion from China, the O’Neil Government intends to STEAL MORE FROM FUTURE GENERATIONS from the anticipated LNG benefits. The national debt from foreign and domestic lenders accrued over the last few decades already tips the scales at K9 billion. The K6 billion from Exim Bank will close to double the national debt overnight to a whopping K15 billion. Sovereign investment funds generate economic security for future generations by converting “endowments” of natural resources into financial endowments. Some of them are so-called “permanent funds,” born of the philosophy that benefits from a country’s nonrenewable resources belong to all future generations, not just to the generation that discovered them. National laws should be made to ensure the current and future governments don’t use up the principle from the LNG cashflows but only live off the interest from these funds so the value of principle

"Screw you pig, go to jail while I walk free from NPF, whose laughing now" THE Task Force Sweep has swiftly moved to arrest former speaker of parliament Jeffery Nape in Kundiawa, Chimbu, on the eve of the 37th Independence Day anniversary. Nape was alleged to have misused K5 million. A warrant of arrest issued by the Task Force Sweep was used to apprehend Nape as he was leaving the Kundiawa court house last Friday where he was attending a separate bribery charge of K30,000. Nape was alleged to have offered K30,000 to a fellow candidate in the Sinasina-Yongumugl seat during the elections to induce him to step aside. Reports said Kundiawa police acted on the advice of police investigators attached to the Task Force Sweep to arrest Nape. “The Sweep team executed the warrant through Goroka police who then briefed the job to Kundiawa police to effect arrest,” an officer said. He said the police have a duty to perform for the state. Therefore, they executed the warrant to make the

"Screw you pig, go to jail while I walk free from NPF, whose laughing now" THE Task Force Sweep has swiftly moved to arrest former speaker of parliament Jeffery Nape in Kundiawa, Chimbu, on the eve of the 37th Independence Day anniversary. Nape was alleged to have misused K5 million. A warrant of arrest issued by the Task Force Sweep was used to apprehend Nape as he was leaving the Kundiawa court house last Friday where he was attending a separate bribery charge of K30,000. Nape was alleged to have offered K30,000 to a fellow candidate in the Sinasina-Yongumugl seat during the elections to induce him to step aside. Reports said Kundiawa police acted on the advice of police investigators attached to the Task Force Sweep to arrest Nape. “The Sweep team executed the warrant through Goroka police who then briefed the job to Kundiawa police to effect arrest,” an officer said. He said the police have a duty to perform for the state. Therefore, they executed the warran

The Kina TT sell rate is dropping fast in the last couple of days USD 0.4550, USD0.4531, USD0.4526 This is showing sign that this government is throwing the economy down the drain, unplanned borrowing, unnecessary spending, K500million deficit in 9 months is something to worry about yes the problem list still stand tall regardless of K76billion spend in the last 10 years. Constant PNG Power power blackouts, Incompetent Telikom PNG with unreliable services, Papua New Guineans being paid under colonial pay grade as compared to their expatriate colleague with little experiences, Roads system crumbling down, still no company has found innovation in building tar roads that will last for more than a year. Housing and health care is a problem for all urban areas in PNG and the worst is still in the rural areas, Government is not smart enough to develop sustainable agriculture project that can equal the magnitude of the LNG and other mining projects so to save our mineral resources for future

The Kina TT sell rate is dropping fast in the last couple of days USD 0.4550, USD0.4531, USD0.4526 This is showing sign that this government is throwing the economy down the drain, unplanned borrowing, unnecessary spending, K500million deficit in 9 months is something to worry about yes the problem list still stand tall regardless of K76billion spend in the last 10 years. Constant PNG Power power blackouts, Incompetent Telikom PNG with unreliable services, Papua New Guineans being paid under colonial pay grade as compared to their expatriate colleague with little experiences, Roads system crumbling down, still no company has found innovation in building tar roads that will last for more than a year. Housing and health care is a problem for all urban areas in PNG and the worst is still in the rural areas, Government is not smart enough to develop sustainable agriculture project that can equal the magnitude of the LNG and other mining projects so to save our mineral resources f

Steve Reynolds Papua New Guineans, we are about to celebrate independence day tomorrow. But ALREADY WORRIED to celebrate the eve when : Government (P. O’Neil and his delegation) in Russia are going to spend PNG taxpayers money K12 Million- For absolutely nothing- Its really hard to get that sort of money when we cry for it in our services which takes years for delivery but this government looks fit to make transactions possible within days to finance the trip-WHAT IS PNG BENEFITING FROM THIS TRIP???; Brokering K6 Billion loan in China when we cannot control our accounts and financial management system in the country; My children will suffer to pay this huge loan that is obtained by crooks. In effect, 10-20% of the money will go to the private accounts of people who brokered it…It has been the case and it will be case. And How will this money will be spent? What are the budget or expenditure framework devised to necessitate the expenditure? What are the time line for repayments? Which

Steve Reynolds Papua New Guineans, we are about to celebrate independence day tomorrow. But ALREADY WORRIED to celebrate the eve when : Government (P. O’Neil and his delegation) in Russia are going to spend PNG taxpayers money K12 Million- For absolutely nothing- Its really hard to get that sort of money when we cry for it in our services which takes years for delivery but this government looks fit to make transactions possible within days to finance the trip-WHAT IS PNG BENEFITING FROM THIS TRIP???; Brokering K6 Billion loan in China when we cannot control our accounts and financial management system in the country; My children will suffer to pay this huge loan that is obtained by crooks. In effect, 10-20% of the money will go to the private accounts of people who brokered it…It has been the case and it will be case. And How will this money will be spent? What are the budget or expenditure framework devised to necessitate the expenditure? What are the time line for repayments? Whic

HAVE A GREAT DAY CELEBRATING OUR NATIONAL DAY, SEPTEMBER 16 1975

HAVE A GREAT DAY CELEBRATING OUR NATIONAL DAY, SEPTEMBER 16 1975

THE Papua New Guinea Defence Force is made up of three integral parts: the Land, Sea and Air elements. The Land element is the Army. Its flagships are the two Infantry battalions: the First Royal Pacific Islands Regiment and 2RPIR based at Taurama Barracks in Port Moresby and Moem Barracks in Wewak respectively. The two battalions are also responsible for running the country’s two infantry Forward Operations Bases (FOBs), one located in Kiunga in Western Province for 1RPIR and the other in Vanimo, West Sepik Province, for 2RPIR. Soldiers from the two infantry battalions are deployed to the two FOBs and serve four to six month stints there. Their primary role is to patrol strategic areas of parts of the 700km land border between PNG and Indonesia, gather military intelligence and report back to HQ, carry the flag, promote government’s presence in remote villages, engage in disaster and emergency duties and such other tasks as directed by their commanding officers at the FOBs and back at

THE Papua New Guinea Defence Force is made up of three integral parts: the Land, Sea and Air elements. The Land element is the Army. Its flagships are the two Infantry battalions: the First Royal Pacific Islands Regiment and 2RPIR based at Taurama Barracks in Port Moresby and Moem Barracks in Wewak respectively. The two battalions are also responsible for running the country’s two infantry Forward Operations Bases (FOBs), one located in Kiunga in Western Province for 1RPIR and the other in Vanimo, West Sepik Province, for 2RPIR. Soldiers from the two infantry battalions are deployed to the two FOBs and serve four to six month stints there. Their primary role is to patrol strategic areas of parts of the 700km land border between PNG and Indonesia, gather military intelligence and report back to HQ, carry the flag, promote government’s presence in remote villages, engage in disaster and emergency duties and such other tasks as directed by their commanding officers at the FOBs and ba

Bob Carr's threat of sanctions against PNG if it dared to delay the scheduled election was an important moment in the education of Bob. Not the least problem with Carr's short-lived thought balloon in his first days as foreign minister, as it was explained by his new department, was the reality that Australia would have a lot of trouble getting the rest of the South Pacific to embrace any action against PNG. To follow that thought, come back down the time tunnel to the day after Carr had been sworn in, his first full day as foreign minister. What was virtually Carr's maiden interview was with that old-Labor-mate-turned-TV-interviewer Graham Richardson. Everything was so new the transcript never got posted on the DFAT website; the maiden effort was not kept for posterity because its sentiments were so quickly shredded. Surveying the array of issues about to confront the new minister, Richardson asked about the speculation then coming out of Port Moresby of some de

Bob Carr's threat of sanctions against PNG if it dared to delay the scheduled election was an important moment in the education of Bob. Not the least problem with Carr's short-lived thought balloon in his first days as foreign minister, as it was explained by his new department, was the reality that Australia would have a lot of trouble getting the rest of the South Pacific to embrace any action against PNG. To follow that thought, come back down the time tunnel to the day after Carr had been sworn in, his first full day as foreign minister. What was virtually Carr's maiden interview was with that old-Labor-mate-turned-TV-interviewer Graham Richardson. Everything was so new the transcript never got posted on the DFAT website; the maiden effort was not kept for posterity because its sentiments were so quickly shredded. Surveying the array of issues about to confront the new minister, Richardson asked about the speculation then coming out of Port Moresby of

By Stephen Lee It’s one of our closest neighbours, but there’s a huge gulf between Papua New Guinea and Australia when it comes to gay rights. Less than a thousand kilometres separate the two nations but homosexuality in PNG is still illegal. And despite a new government, there seems little hope for change. Being openly gay in Papua New Guinea could put you in jail for up to 14 years. Homosexuality is illegal, an archaic hangover from colonial British times. Though the laws aren’t strictly enforced, gay men say they face daily discrimination, and often struggle to find work. Moses Tau knew he was gay from a young age but struggled with his identity. “It was very painful my growing up,” he told SBS World News Australia reporter Kathy Novak. “Sometimes I’d ask the Creator – Why am I like this? What’s the reason? Is there any exit or any way out for me?” Moses put his energy into singing and became a recording artist. But when he was picked to represent PNG at Sydney Mardi Gras in 2000, t

By Stephen Lee It’s one of our closest neighbours, but there’s a huge gulf between Papua New Guinea and Australia when it comes to gay rights. Less than a thousand kilometres separate the two nations but homosexuality in PNG is still illegal. And despite a new government, there seems little hope for change. Being openly gay in Papua New Guinea could put you in jail for up to 14 years. Homosexuality is illegal, an archaic hangover from colonial British times. Though the laws aren’t strictly enforced, gay men say they face daily discrimination, and often struggle to find work. Moses Tau knew he was gay from a young age but struggled with his identity. “It was very painful my growing up,” he told SBS World News Australia reporter Kathy Novak. “Sometimes I’d ask the Creator – Why am I like this? What’s the reason? Is there any exit or any way out for me?” Moses put his energy into singing and became a recording artist. But when he was picked to represent PNG at Sydney Mardi Gras in 2000,

The PM has made an open stand on corruption, The task force sweep team has hit some walls..... It's time for people power to stand with this call and Protest for Good Governance.... Lawyers representing MP's and Department Heads current and former should now be asked to table the asset records and cash flow records and their payments received for services to Public Figures as their commitment to serve Good Governance. The penalty for non compliance should be the banning of their rights to practice law in PNG. Accountants should also face the same process and penalties. All found guilty should be penalized to the maximum for white collar crimes equal to those penalized who are not considered Elite. Technology will help through Google Searches on all names, a petition can be done from the people listing all names appearing in relation to investigations for bribery and corruption found through Google Search, word of mouth can drive this commitment further that as many Papua New Gu

The PM has made an open stand on corruption, The task force sweep team has hit some walls..... It's time for people power to stand with this call and Protest for Good Governance.... Lawyers representing MP's and Department Heads current and former should now be asked to table the asset records and cash flow records and their payments received for services to Public Figures as their commitment to serve Good Governance. The penalty for non compliance should be the banning of their rights to practice law in PNG. Accountants should also face the same process and penalties. All found guilty should be penalized to the maximum for white collar crimes equal to those penalized who are not considered Elite. Technology will help through Google Searches on all names, a petition can be done from the people listing all names appearing in relation to investigations for bribery and corruption found through Google Search, word of mouth can drive this commitment further that as many Papua New Gu

The planned borrowing of K6.0 billion by the O’ Neill- Dion Government will bring total foreign debt of the country to K8.6 billion and K14.6 billion overall which is equivalent to 45% of GDP- a level that is considered unsustainable by international standards. This will hasten the country to its economic ruin. All the gains PNG has made in the last ten years will come to nothing. The Opposition is extremely concerned about the impact of this loan to the PNG economy and on future budgets in terms of interest payments and fees. It represents a major risk to the stability of the budget and the country as a whole. At present, the country is paying K460 million per annum in loan interests alone. The K6.0 billion loan will mean this will rise much higher. How are we going to finance this loan when already the country is paying K460 million on loan interests each year? Taxes from the PNG LNG Gas are going to be received by the State by 2022. How is the loan going to be repaid? The Opposition